From May through October, Saturday morning in Cotswold has a fixed address. It is the Providence Baptist Church parking lot at 4921 Randolph Road, where the Cotswold Farmers Market sets up from 8 a.m. to noon. This year's last market is Saturday, October 31.
After that, Saturday plans move farther down the same road to the Mint Museum Randolph at 2730 Randolph Road, where a major new exhibition opens a week before the market closes. The museum has its free nights and free weekends listed through December. Newer restaurants in Cotswold cover the meals the market used to supply.
October 24 is the one Saturday with both
Before the season turns, there's a single Saturday when both ends of Randolph Road have something new to offer. On October 24, the market holds its second-to-last morning, and "Brilliant by Design: The Handbags of Judith Leiber" opens at the Mint Museum Randolph. One way to spend that day:
- 8 a.m. to noon: Cotswold Farmers Market at 4921 Randolph Road, on one of its last two Saturdays of the year.
- Late morning: Drive down Randolph Road to the Mint Museum Randolph for the opening day of the Leiber exhibition. It brings together more than 100 handbags and accessories, shown alongside fashions from the Mint's own collection.
- Same visit: "Interventions: Weaving Joy, Woven Resistance" is also at Randolph and closes January 17, 2027, so November and December are its last full months.
- October 31: The market's final morning of 2026.
Why the market stops when it does
The market's calendar follows what it sells. It started in 2016 as a service project of the Charlotte Providence Rotary Club and now runs as its own 501(c)(3), open every Saturday from May to October, according to its profile on Share Charlotte. CLTure's farmers market guide describes it as a producers-only market. Its produce and proteins come from within 100 miles of Charlotte, and artisans sell fresh-cut flowers, handmade soap and candles.
A market that only sells what nearby farms grow will end with the growing season. The market's season has the parking-lot pieces too: chef-prepared dishes made from market ingredients, local music and monthly programs. All of that pauses until May, and the market's newsletter is the place to watch for the 2027 opening date.
The Mint has dates set through December
The Mint's Uptown and Randolph calendar already lists every free evening and free weekend through mid-December, so a Cotswold household can plan November and December now.
| Date | What's happening at Mint Museum Randolph | Cost |
|---|---|---|
| Wednesday, Nov. 4 | Free Wednesday Evening, 5 to 9 p.m. | Free |
| Weekend of Nov. 7 | Bank of America Museums on Us | Free for cardholders |
| Wednesdays, Nov. 11, 18 and 25 | Free Wednesday Evenings, 5 to 9 p.m. | Free |
| Sunday, Nov. 29 | Museum Store Sunday, 10:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. | 30% off storewide |
| Wednesday, Dec. 2 | Free Wednesday Evening, 5 to 9 p.m. | Free |
| Weekend of Dec. 5 | Bank of America Museums on Us | Free for cardholders |
| Wednesdays, Dec. 9 and 16 | Free Wednesday Evenings, 5 to 9 p.m. | Free |
The free Wednesday evenings are presented by Publix Super Market Charities. They run at both Mint locations, and the museum asks visitors to check its events calendar for current hours. Museums on Us falls on the first full weekend of each month. Cardholders with a Bank of America, Merrill or Bank of America Private Bank card get in free by showing an active card and a valid government-issued photo ID.
Museum Store Sunday on November 29 is the Sunday after Thanksgiving. The 30% discount covers both museum stores and online orders.
The Leiber show is likely to be the main draw on most of those dates. It stays up through July 3, 2027, so it will still be there when the market comes back in May. At Randolph, "Portals to the Past: British Ceramics 1675–1825" is listed as ongoing, with no end date posted.
Where the meals go
The market was also a place to eat on Saturday morning. Some of the restaurants that can fill that role are new to Cotswold, and one opened in the middle of this year's market season.
The Belly of the Whale opened Thursday, July 16, 2026, at 4422 Colwick Road. CharlotteFive reported that the space was last home to The Pizza Peel + Tap Room, which closed in November after 17 years there. Husband-and-wife team Raynold and Tatiana Mendizabal run the 2,700-square-foot restaurant. The menu centers on fresh seafood with a coastal North Carolina influence. Service times have varied since opening, so check the restaurant's own site before you go.
Inizio Pizza Napoletana is a Cotswold Village entry in 6AM City's roundup of new and coming-soon restaurants. It's at 282 S. Sharon Amity Road, Suite 335, and takes orders online.
For a breakfast to fill the 8 a.m. slot, Eddie's Place at 617 S. Sharon Amity Road has been around since 1997. On the Monroe Road side, Common Market Oakwold at 4420-A Monroe Road serves breakfast daily and pours coffee from Charlotte roasters Magnolia and Enderly.
The next opening is still a few months off. Kitchen Social, an Ohio-born scratch kitchen, is planning a Cotswold Village restaurant at 104 S. Sharon Amity Road with a target opening of January 2027, co-founder Brian O'Malley told CharlotteFive. It would be the chain's first North Carolina location. The 4,157-square-foot lease was first reported by the Charlotte Business Journal in March. January is a target date, so plan on it opening after the holidays.
Holiday errands along the same route
The market's artisan tables close for the winter. That moves gift shopping to the places along this route that stay open. The Mint's Museum Store Sunday on November 29 is one. Another is Cotswold Marketplace, which describes itself as a home décor, gift, art and design store with more than 70 merchants. In Cotswold Village, the center's directory lists Toy Mania, Carolina Fine Art, World Market and The Butler's Pantry, along with Harris Teeter for the grocery run that used to start at the market.
Cotswold Village held its tree lighting on Saturday, November 22, 2025, according to Fun4CharlotteKids. The center hasn't posted a 2026 date yet, so the directory page is the place to check later in the season.
Until the market comes back in May, the dates are already set: the Leiber opening on October 24, the market's last morning on October 31, free Wednesday evenings at the Mint through December 16, and Kitchen Social's target opening in January.
We follow Cotswold weekend by weekend, from Randolph Road to Sharon Amity, because that's how buyers and sellers ask us about it. If you'd like to talk about a home within reach of the market, the Mint or the new tables on Colwick Road, Charlotte Living Realty Group is glad to share what we're seeing on the ground. Experience the Difference.
